Rumor – A storm video shows football-sized hail falling in India in a dramatic display.
Analysis
A series of videos showing a supposed giant hailstorm in India has been circulating on the internet. In the footage, ice stones fall during a storm and strike cars, while several posts claim they are the size of soccer balls.
According to the content spread online, a severe storm hit regions of India and left a trail of urban destruction. The images show cars destroyed by ice stones of unusual proportions, drawing the attention of internet users worldwide due to the severity of the scenes shown. Read the message circulating online:
GRANIZO COBRE RUAS DE GELO E CAUSA ESTRAGOS NA ÍNDIA O fenômeno bizarro por trás dessas imagens virais! Durante uma tempestade intensa, vídeos nas redes sociais mostraram pedras de granizo caindo com tamanho impressionante – algumas supostamente do tamanho de uma bola de futebol. Meteorologistas explicam que esse fenômeno ocorre em super tempestades com fortes correntes verticais, onde gotas de água são lançadas repetidamente para o alto, congelam e crescem em camadas até despencarem pesadas sobre o solo. Essas tempestades podem causar grandes danos em veículos, telhados, estufas e plantações. Ainda não há comunicado oficial sobre os prejuízos, mas as imagens viralizaram rapidamente.
Especialistas alertam: em períodos de tempestades e granizo, mantenha-se em segurança e evite sair de casa. Granizo gigante: por que pedras do tamanho de bola caem em tempestades Durante uma tempestade intensa, vídeos que viralizaram mostram pedras de granizo com tamanho impressionante — algumas comparadas a bolas de futebol. Meteorologistas atribuem esse fenômeno a super tempestades com correntes verticais muito fortes. Nessas nuvens, gotas de chuva são lançadas repetidamente para cima dentro da nuvem; a cada vez que sobem, congelem forming camadas até atingirem tamanhos grandes e, finalmente, caírem pesadas ao solo.
Fact Check
The video is fake. The images were generated using artificial intelligence and do not depict a recent giant hailstorm in India. To verify the facts surrounding this viral post, we structured the fact-check by answering the three main questions that emerged online: 1) Does the video show soccer ball-sized hail falling in India? 2) Was there any hailstorm as described in India? 3) Has an ice stone the size of a soccer ball ever fallen?
Does the video show soccer ball-sized hail falling in India?
No. The video does not show a soccer ball-sized hailstorm in India. The images circulating on social media were created with artificial intelligence and began to be shared as if they were recordings of a real storm. There is no credible record of any recent episode in India matching the features shown in the viral content.
Was there any hailstorm as described in India?
There are no recent meteorological records or official reports confirming the occurrence of a hailstorm with stones of these proportions on Indian territory. Although the country’s history includes severe documented hail events, such as reports in the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) database, the event being shared on digital media is completely non-existent and lacks local scientific backing.
Has an ice stone the size of a soccer ball ever fallen?
Yes. Although rare, hailstones near the size of a soccer ball have been documented. The world record for the largest physically measured diameter belongs to a 23.6-centimeter (9.3-inch) stone that fell in Argentina in 2018. A standard size-5 soccer ball has a diameter of approximately 22 centimeters (8.6 inches). This means the largest estimated stone in Argentina actually exceeded the approximate size of a soccer ball. However, this is not what occurred in India recently, nor are there recent records of it.
Conclusion
It is false that the video shows a recent soccer ball-sized hailstorm in India. The images were generated by artificial intelligence. Giant hailstones exist and have been recorded in various countries, but the real cases are unrelated to the viral video.
Fake news ❌
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